Pass the Popcorn review

Rating: 7/10 (13 July 2013)

When I was much younger than I am today, I played a certain PlayStation 2 game named War of the Monsters, in which giant monsters fight each other. The game, despite lacking intelligence, was extremely fun and enjoyable. When I heard Guillermo del Toro was making a blockbuster movie about giant robots fighting giant monsters, I instantly thought of War of the Monsters, and I must admit, I was skeptical. But, at the same time I knew that the only person that could pull off a movie like this was del Toro – the genius behind great movies like Pan's Labyrinth and Hellboy 2. The final result certainly wasn't awful, but it wasn't amazing either.
Pacific Rim's plot is set in a not so distant future in which giant monsters named Kaijus start coming out of the Pacific and attacking major cities world wide. Humanity, as a response, creates giant robots named Jaegers, which need to be piloted by two people, to fight off the creatures. This method seems efficient at first, but eventually more menacing monsters emerge and slowly start destroying the Jaegers. In such a defeat, our main character Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) loses his co-pilot and brother Yanci (Diego Klattenhoff). This tragic loss forces him to retire from piloting Jaegers. But obviously, in a not so unpredictable turn of events, he starts piloting Jaegers again, aided by a new copilot – a young Asian woman named Mako Mori who seeks revenge against the Kaijus.
In a big blockbuster 'robots vs monsters' movie like this one, many people were afraid of how del Toro would deal with the human aspect of the movie, so let's get that out of the way first. The human aspect of the movie is satisfying. Of course, it's not spectacular but it's developed just enough not to make you bored during the pauses between the action scenes. The main character Raleigh Becket is somewhat bland and one-dimensional and the actor who plays him, the anonymous Charlie Hunnam, does have clingy acting abilities, but all of that is overshadowed by other characters and actors in the movie. Idris Elba is great as the marshal Stacker Pentecost, Rinko Kikuchi gives a convincing portrayal of Mako Mori and Guilermo del Toro's favorite, Ron Perlman, is terrific in his semi-cameo role. There are also two scientists in the movie – Dr. Newton Geiszler (Charlie Day) and Gottlieb (Burn Gorman) – who were rather interesting and likable. So I'd say the movie tackled the human aspect just fine.
Now that we got the human aspect out of the way, let's talk about the real reason why everyone wanted/wants to see this movie – monsters and robots. Both the Kaijus and Jaegers look absolutely amazing. There are several different designs of both these groups of giants, and each one looks amazing and special in its own way. So props to the effect designers/visual designers or whoever actually created and realised the Jeager/Kaiju designs. The action scenes are brilliantly shot and edited. The majority of the action (as you can see in the trailers) takes place in the night time, but it's very effectively actualised so you can properly see everything that's going on. So, regarding the robot/monster aspect of the movie, Pacific Rim is one fun, entertaining and amusing summer blockbuster.
Of course, not all in Pacific Rim is milk and honey. The main problem with the movie is that it's too loud and that does get tedious after 2 hours. Buildings being destroyed, metal screeching, monsters shrieking, explosions and other irritating noises are constantly present in Pacific Rim. Because of this, after the movie was over my ears were aching. So, in spite of how fun the movie may seem, I surely won't see it again, at least not on the big screen. The other problem with the movie was the ending, which was underwhelming. The final fight is quite disappointing, considering how other fights in the movie were more engaging. However, I think I would recommend Pacific Rim, especially since it's not like there's something much better currently playing in theaters. But if you want to enjoy your viewing experience even more, I'd advise to bring a pair of earplugs along.
Rating: 7/10 Read more at http://passpopcorn.wordpress.com/